To hop or not hop with a 3yo...

[HCinKC]

My 3yo and I will be doing DL while DH is at a trade show. While I've been to DL many times, I've never been with kids, and I've never done any Disney park with a preschooler. We will have 4 days, so I feel like we'll be fine without hoppers, but I can't bring myself to commit. The price difference is about $100. If I do buy regular tickets from a place like Park Savers, can I upgrade to hoppers at the gate if I change my mind?

 

[smartlabelprint]

Yes. Check Ares travel they had some at the old price.

Then last minute travel club was usually the cheapest.

You can upgrade.

With our toddlers we parkhop. We start in one park. Usually after break go to a different one. Prefer DCA in the afternoon. Wider walkways are more peaceful to us.

We get 5 day tickets.

 

[Indiana Scott]

We would never consider not hopping.

 

[22Tink]

I would never not get hoppers. We’ve hopped on all our trips, even when the kids were little.

 

[SOCALMouseMommy]

My little one just turned 3 and we hop nearly every time we go (annual passes). It's great to hop over DCA in the afternoons when DL starts getting really busy.

 

[mom2rtk]

We never hop at WDW but always do at DLR. The parks are so close, it's almost like one big park.

But yes, if you are unsure, it's a good idea to buy the base tickets knowing you can upgrade to hoppers if needed.

 

[azdisneylover]

I would suggest getting hoppers with Maxpass. This will be easier with your 3 year old to pull passes. Have a fun time at the parks!

 

[Christina-B-Na]

We don't hop anymore now that we have small kiddos. We much more prefer to spread the trip out over several days and then take a more relaxed approach to each park. We have found that it ends up being more enjoyable for our kids as well as us.
If you are going for 4 days you could go all day to Disneyland and then all day to DCA and then decide which park to spend the following 2 days in. Last time we did 1 day at DCA and then 3 days at Disneyland and it was perfect for us.
To hop or not to hop all depends on your touring style.

 

[Mousequake]

I would suggest getting hoppers with Maxpass. This will be easier with your 3 year old to pull passes. Have a fun time at the parks!

With a 3-year-old, there won't be very many rides she could do that use FastPass.

 

[10SE]

I have kids in that range and we always hop. Since the rides they can go on are somewhat limited it makes the parks effectively smaller than they are for older kids and adults. My kids have favorites in both parks (I can’t count the number of times I’ve done the Ariel ride) and we bounce back and forth quite a bit — epecially in the afternoon when Fantasyland is slammed, there aren’t a ton of other options in DLR for little ones.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

With oldest, we always parkhopped. He loved doing both parks, even when he wasn't tall enough for all the rides. He just enjoyed seeing everything!, With youngest, we never hopped. He adored TT, and later TT and FL together, and never wanted to leave, so hopping was a waste of money. I would start with base tickets, then see how your little one does on day one. Hopping is so easy at DLR and upgrading your ticket is easy, too. If hopping looks like a good idea, then upgrade before the end of day one and go from there.

 

[HCinKC]

Thanks everyone! I do prefer hoppers. I was also thinking...we are there a Thurs-Sun in early March, so with a weekend and possible spring breaks, I think I’ll just get them. I’m so excited to finally get back to DL!

 

[FireflyTrance]

Last time we went with my daughter (age 4) we didn't get park hoppers and it was fine. I was trying to save money. The three times before that we did get them. I would be more inclined get the hoppers during a busy time. Last time we went it was mid-Sept and wasn't too busy.

 

[Baptist]

We never hop at WDW but always do at DLR. The parks are so close, it's almost like one big park.

But yes, if you are unsure, it's a good idea to buy the base tickets knowing you can upgrade to hoppers if needed.

I agree! We treat them as one big park. Perfect with MaxPass.

 

[lcp9]

We have done both ways - now that our oldest is 6, we always do hoppers. Is your 3yo a boy or girl (and, I guess more importantly, does he or she like Cars?) Our daughter at 3 didn't care about Cars, pretty much only princesses, so DCA didn't have a ton for us to do. In fact, on a 4 day trip around that age I think we spent 1 day at DCA. Depending on height, you're looking at Monsters, Little Mermaid, Mater, Bugs Life, Toy Story. My point is, you may be ok without hoppers depending on your child's interests.

 

[chris1212]

We just got back from our first DL trip with a 6 and 4 year old and a baby. We got free tickets through our Air Miles points and the only option was hoppers. We had a 5 day pass and didn't hop once, even though the option was there. We were content staying in one park for the day and exploring everything rather than go back and forth. We spent 3 days at DL and 2 days at CAP, it worked really well for us!

 

[MonocularVision]

Yeah, I will go against the common wisdom here and say we almost never hop.